CHICAGO – The George Mason University men's basketball team (18-9, 7-7) dropped an 80-59 contest at A-10-leading Loyola Chicago (20-7, 12-2) on Saturday afternoon inside Gentile Arena.
The Ramblers used a frenetic pace to keep the Patriots on their heels while leading for 35:16 of a possible 40 minutes. Loyola Chicago held a +16 (20-4) edge in fast break points and turned 15 Patriot turnovers into 19 points.
The Ramblers also held a +4 (35-31) edge on the glass. Mason is 17-3 when holding the rebounding edge this season, but just 1-6 when its opponent wins the battle on the boards.
"There's a reason why Loyola Chicago is now 12-2 in the league," head coach Tony Skinn ('06) said. "Credit to Drew Valentine for his evaluation of the guys he brought in. They're naturally tough. We're tough at times, but in an atmosphere like this where you have to be as tough as you can humanely be, we weren't that tonight. They set the tone and took us out of our possessions. Defensively, we didn't return the favor."
Graduate forward
Amari Kelly led the Green & Gold with 19 points (6-12 FG) and made a career-best three triples on five attempts.
Senior
Darius Maddox added 17 points, five rebounds and two assists, while graduate guard
Tre' Wood chipped in six points and tied for the team-lead with three assists. Freshman guard
Baraka Okojie notched five points, three assists and three steals.
The Patriots struggled from the floor while shooting 33.3 percent (18-54) overall and 22.7 percent (5-22) from 3-point range. Loyola shot 55.6 percent and made 10-of-21 3pt attempts (.476). It's just the fourth time a Patriot foe has shot 50+ percent from the floor this season.
Three steals over the first four minutes by an active Okojie helped the Patriots build an early 10-7 advantage. From there, a 7+ minute scoring drought by the Patriots led to a 10-0 Rambler run and 19-11 Loyola lead. The Ramblers extended it to 13 at 29-16 and led by 14 (41-27) at the break.
Mason was within 12 at 46-34, but at that point, the Ramblers rattled off a 20-2 run over the next 7+ minutes to go ahead by 30 (66-36) with 10 minutes to play. Mason would not move closer than 21 for the remainder of the game.
Next up, the Patriots wrap up their two-game road swing with a trip to the Bronx to take on Fordham Tuesday night (Feb. 27). Tip-off between the Patriots and Rams is set for 7 p.m. The game will be broadcast on ESPN+.
